Is this SpaceX asking for NASA money for a Humans to Mars Program? Americans can go to Mars by 2020 for a fraction of what it cost for us to go to the Moon. We can put ten US Astronauts simultaneously on Mars in 2020! And we can use American Made SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket stages, Dragon Crew Capsules, Bigelow Aerospace Inflatabe TransHabs, and automated Solar-Jet refueling equipment to do it. And the whole six year program will cost about what we paid for half of ONE Space Shuttle flight. The secret is reusable rockets. Right now F9's are ten times cheaper than the Space Shuttle. When rockets are reused routinely, that cost will DROP by another factor of ten to $100 a pound to low earth orbit. The trick is setting up "gas stations for rockets" in space first! First in low earth orbit, then in low mars orbit. The fuel on the mars end will be made on the mars surface using automated equipment called Solar-Jet technology. It takes sunlight+water+CO2 and a ceria catalyst literally reverses the normal combustion process to make RP-1 Kerosene rocket fuel, or later, Methane, whatever you need. Fuel Depots are just 3 Solar Mirrors, made of reflectively coated Kapton film, joined together to make a "cold trap" in space that prevents Liquid oxygen from boiling off due to constant exposure to the heat from the sun. All of this technology exists today! We just have to put it together. Do we have the "national will" to be leaders in space exploration again? I think we do! I think we always have. I think the politicians are the ones that have let us down."Occupy Mars!"